Serene Bedrooms

Set the stage for sweet dreams with these soothing palettes

Slide 1 Of Serene Bedrooms

A Restful Bedroom Begins with Color

Color is the most important design tool for setting the stage for sweet dreams in the bedroom. Interior designer Tobi Fairley used it with flourish in her Little Rock home, creating a restful retreat in muted blue and taupe with accents of cream. The toned-down palette begins with blue, which actually is tinted with gray and brown for a more neutral presentation (think overcast sky).

The blue-gray hue appears most prominently on the walls, covered in Kelly Wearstler’s trellis paper. The wallpaper is complemented by Celerie Kemble’s “Hot House Flowers” linen print on the curvy upholstered headboard. Both the wallpaper and fabric are from Schumacher.

A serene bedroom decorated with classic style can exude glamour without looking like a tart. This master bedroom plays out the same taupe and grayish-blue palette seen in the previous slides, but its use of color is more sparing. Instead, white walls dominate. This allows their architectural niches, which create interest through dimension, to have the quiet power of poetry. Sensual texture is brought to the bed, which is upholstered in a taupe cut cotton velvet. It’s as soothing to the hand as it is to the eye. Shapely mirrored bedside tables and a dramatic beaded chandelier ensure glamour without appearing flashy.

In the same bedroom you just viewed, the calm continues to the windows, which are dressed in simple panels in cream-colored cotton mixed with blue-and-taupe stripes. A cushy chaise goes monochromatic to preserve the serenity. An Afghan area rug beautifully grounds the room in the restful taupe-and-blue palette.

Note: The taupe-and-blue twosome is cool and restful, but it’s also one of the hottest color combos on the trend radar.

What a difference a coat of paint can make in lifting a bedroom from the decorating doldrums and infusing it with serene style. This master bedroom’s traditional design is articulated at the walls, which go restful in a baby blue paint romantically called “Rainwashed” (from Sherwin Williams). The ceiling’s double moldings are painted “Eggshell” (Sherwin Williams) for an easy-on-the-eye contrast to the blue that defines the room’s bones. Without disrupting the bedroom’s tranquility, the owners even managed to continue the collected look of the other spaces with a single sculpture at the window and a dramatic silver-leaf pendant light from World’s Away.

When decorating for serenity, think foggy day at the beach. That’s the cloud-faded shade of blue that’s brought to the walls to assure restfulness in this Key West master bedroom. (Good to know there’s an option to the perky bright blues that are a decorating staple for beach houses.) A misty seascape by Susan Sugar above the bed shows the nebulous color in its natural environment. A Clarence House floral on the pillows and scaldino introduces soft rose to the palette. The floral raises the visual heat just enough to prevent the soothing space from feeling cold.

Good news for fans of traditional toile: tranquility and toile can play on the same team. The key to using the highly figured fabric without sacrificing serenity is to restrict its palette to a single, soothing color. In this master bedroom, a blue-on-white toile from Hinson & Company paves the room with peacefulness. And forget less is more. As this design shows, more toile means more serenity. With the walls, headboard, bedskirt, pillows, and duvet all covered in a single toile, the space appears seamlessly serene.

When a bedroom has architectural interest like this one, proceed with simplicity. Leaving the walls and ceiling swathed in white paint allows their lines to speak for themselves. That, in itself, is soothing. The biggest temptation to avoid is placing art above the bed. Left blank, the white space reads clean and clear, and its contrast with the dark bed creates understated elegance. White bed linens contrast with the dark colors of the antique rug and the moss-colored Cowtan & Tout velvet.

If soothing bedrooms begin with color, so do sassy ones. But what if you want a bedroom that’s both? The three-color combo used in this showhouse guest bedroom points the way. The first two colors, soft gray and lilac, bathe the space with tranquility. Then accents of chartreuse such as Silk Trading Company’s lampshades pump up the palette with attitude. Inspiration? A Vera Wang blouse. A Lucite bench and mirrored chests from George Smith add sizzling glam without disturbing the room’s abiding restfulness.

Pastel greens join with soft blues and rose to act as a calming potion in the guest room of Washington, D.C., designer Skip Sroka’s home. Pale green is artfully applied to upholster all of the major surfaces of the custom bed in sophisticated damask. The cool hue reduces stress much as cucumber applications soothe the eyes. The bed’s soft, padded surfaces embrace relaxation by ensuring comfort. The headboard and footboard, both tufted, embody traditional style while fleur de lis finials add and turned feet display a timeless French influence.

Anchored by the “Artisan Poster Bed” from Hickory Chair, this bedroom in Traditional Home’s 2011 Hamptons Showhouse relies on perfect symmetry for at least part of its soothing quality. The extra-tall tufted off-white headboard is flanked by twin tables with identical lamps, and it’s end-noted with a pair of matching white-painted side chairs. The beautiful balance spells serenity. Colors do, too. The monochromatic palette of icy blue is augmented by pale neutrals—oatmeals and off-whites.

Preserving the serenity of a bedroom requires decorating with a light touch. This view of the 2011 Lake Forest Showhouse master bedroom reveals one of the tranquil room’s few decorative indulgences—stone-etched panels depicting a smattering of ravens. The black birds relate to the room’s black-frame chaise and bed, providing just enough contrast for interest without ruffling the heavenly white calm. Even the chaise is left pattern-free, upholstered in solid ivory.

Serene bedrooms, though often light, white, or the colors of water, also can be decorated with a deeper, more masculine palette. This master bedroom is designed with dark neutrals and almost no pattern. The dark headboard and slate-hued velvet stools mix with silver, charcoal, and white accents. Walls are painted a calm taupe. The mix of neutrals, sleek lines, and luxurious textures work together to ensure a restful retreat.

In decorating, where there is a serene envelope of ivory, there is room for indulgence. In this master bedroom, the indulgence is indigo pattern. No worries that the tranquility will be dispelled. The ivory and beige tone-on-tone striped walls, creamy draperies given a crisp edge beneath matching tailored valances, and mix of ivory upholstered seating and pale painted furniture ensure restfulness. The three indigo patterns—one on the headboard, another on the bed skirt, and yet a different one on the area rug—keep the decibals low through repetition of a key color.

Tip: Prevent a busy look when mixing patterns by varying the scale. In this bedroom, the largest pattern is on the rug; a medium scale pattern decorates the bed skirt; and a small leafy pattern enlivens the headboard.